CHAPTER I.
RADIO-ACTIVE SUBSTANCES.
1. Introduction. The close of the old and the beginning of the new century have been marked by a very rapid increase of our knowledge of that most important but comparatively little known subject—the connection between electricity and matter. No study has been more fruitful in surprises to the investigator, both from the remarkable nature of the phenomena exhibited and from the laws controlling them. The more the subject is examined, the more complex must we suppose the constitution of matter in order to explain the remarkable effects observed. While the experimental results have led to the view that the constitution of the atom itself is very complex, at the same time they have confirmed the old theory of the discontinuous or atomic structure of matter. The study of the radio-active substances and of the
discharge of electricity through gases has supplied very strong experimental evidence in support of the fundamental ideas of the existing atomic theory. It has also indicated that the atom itself is not the smallest unit of matter, but is a complicated structure made up of a number of smaller bodies.
A great impetus to the study of this subject was initially given by the experiments of Lenard on the cathode rays, and by Röntgen's discovery of the X rays. An examination of the conductivity imparted to a gas by the X rays led to a clear view of the mechanism of the transport of electricity through gases by means of charged ions. This ionization theory of gases has been shown to afford a satisfactory explanation not only of the passage of electricity through flames and vapours, but also of the
